News

The incredible lightness of being

Published 10 January 2012

Exhibition 7 January – 20 February 2012
Symposium 20 January 2012

The UK premiere of an exhibition featuring the creative genius of international award-winning Czech designer, Jiří Pelcl, is being hosted by the University of Brighton this month.

The Incredible Lightness of Being: Jiří Pelcl – Czech Design exhibition runs at the University of Brighton Gallery until 20 February and will be accompanied by a symposium on the impact of Czech Design on 20 January.

Like the recently deceased writer and former president of the Czech Republic Vaclav Havel, Pelcl has a long history of standing up for artistic freedom and the exhibition and symposium come at a time when the struggle for freedom of expression against Communism is under renewed focus.

Cactus vases by Jiří Pelcl

Pelcl was a founder member of Atika, an independent radical design group set up in Czechoslovakia in 1987. It defied the Communist authorities and promoted aesthetically beautiful objects in place of the grey mass-produced objects being churned out in his country at that time. His work celebrating individual artistry and imagination has had a huge influence on up and coming Czech designers over the last 20 years.

The designs on display in Brighton include one-off objects which demonstrate his range, such as the elegantly sculptured Daniela chair (1995) and the 2011 Luxury sofa. His Luxury collection was premiered in Milan Design Week in 2011 and is based on the innovative use of ordinary materials such as wood and paper to highlight the essence of an object.

As well as furniture, there are his imaginative designs for accessories, glassware and cutlery which have transformed the output of many Czech companies. These include his Bohemia White and Bohemia Cobalt dining sets (2001) for ?eský Porcelán, the Alva collection of accessories for commercial interiors (2007) manufactured by Techo, as well as a range of glassware for Crystalex, formerly the largest corporation within the state-controlled glass industry.

The exhibition was designed by Jiří Pelcl and co-curated by Sylva Petrova and the University of Brighton's Professor Jonathan Woodham.

Pelcl, founder of the influential ATELIER PELCL, has received many highly prestigious national and international design awards, including the World Best Design – Legacy for the Future Design Award at Seoul (2007) and the National Design Prize of the Slovak Design Centre (2011).

He has had more than 20 solo and 110 group exhibitions globally and has written a number of books including Czech Design 1995-2000: furniture, lighting, tableware, textiles, products (2001).

Exhibition

The Incredible Lightness of Being: Jiří Pelcl – Czech Design exhibition is at the University of Brighton Gallery, Grand Parade, until 20 February 2012. Monday - Saturday 10am – 5 pm.

Symposium

Czech Design: Independent, Free and Democratic? will be held on Friday 20 January 2012 in the Sallis Benney Theatre, University of Brighton, Grand Parade, Brighton BN2 0JY.

Find out more

You can find out more from the Faculty of Arts website.